The present invention relates to seals, and more particularly to V-ring seals for sealing against axial surfaces.
V-ring seals are known and typically include an annular elastomeric body having a main body portion and a cantilever-like sealing portion extending from the main body portion. The seal body is disposed on a shaft or other mechanical member and the sealing portion engages with an axial surface of another mechanical member so as to seal an axial space between the shaft/member and the other member. The seal body has a central bore that receives a portion of the shaft/member, which is sized such that there is an interference fit between the body and the shaft/member. This interference fit is important in order to prevent relative angular displacement between the seal body and the shaft/member as either the shaft/member, or the other member which the sealing portion engages, typically rotates about a central axis.
To ensure a proper interference fit, the seal body may be formed as a molded annular body having an appropriately sized central bore. However, in applications where the seal body must be installed about an assembly that does not allow insertion of the shaft/member into the bore, the body is typically formed as an elongated flexible body having ends coupled together to form the annular seal body. In such cases, the desired interference fit is established by cutting the elongated body to a length that is substantially lesser than the circumference about which the seal is installed, and then the body is stretched to a significant extent prior to connecting the body ends. Such an installation process requires special tooling and training to properly install the seal and connect the body ends, and often leads to distortion of the formed seal body.